


Of Contracts and Aberrations

by anai5



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst and Humor, Businessmen, Drinking, Drunken Kissing, Drunken Shenanigans, Emotional Constipation, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Smut, M/M, Rivalry, Smut, gratuitous use of the word idiot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-08
Updated: 2018-04-21
Packaged: 2019-03-28 14:50:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13906344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anai5/pseuds/anai5
Summary: Sasuke Uchiha is working as a financial manager in a successful company and about to be promoted as a CFO. There's just one thing standing in his way - Naruto Uzumaki; the second financial manager of the company. They are coworkers and rivals, going after the same promotion. What will happen when they are forced to entertain a very peculiar investor in hopes of sealing an important deal?





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an old work that was originally published on ff.net in 2013. I decided to post it here in order to get back into writing for fandoms. I did fix the grammar a bit since it was bothering me but the story is basically still the same.

Sasuke Uchiha pressed his hands on his forehead with an exhausted sigh. His dark eyes explored the papers on his desk in experienced manner, going over the latest reports, investigating the numbers. With a defeated grunt he loosened his tie. This was going to take a while.

He let his fingers travel through his carefully styled jet-black hair while he wrote down some notes on the papers. He vaguely pondered if he had eaten anything proper after breakfast. Probably not, since he was feeling a little bit nauseous.

"Mister Uchiha", a quiet voice piped in suddenly. "Are you still working? I-It's already so late–"

Sasuke lifted his gaze from the papers to the woman standing by the door. Someone from the office, obviously, but he couldn’t remember her name. "What do you want" he stated flatly, narrowing his eyes. He wasn’t sure if she was someone he was supposed to remember.

The woman looked a little bit lost. "What do I–? I mean… I just– I was just worried. Everyone else has already left for the day so…"

Sasuke lifted his eyebrows in a bored manner. "You haven’t", he stated, trying to ignore the headache that was slowly gnawing at his skull. "In fact, if you have too much free time on your hands you could get me the materials I need for the financial statement."

The woman blushed amusingly fast. "I was actually just about to leave", she mumbled, avoiding his gaze. "I just… I will do it first thing on Monday."

Sasuke swallowed a tired scoff and nodded, dismissing the woman. _Typical,_ he almost muttered aloud. He was painfully aware of the fact that some of his female coworkers were somewhat lusting after him. She wasn’t the first one to feign concern in order to get closer to him. Last week one of the older ladies told him that he looked stiff and could use a massage—and the lady had the nerve to wink after that. Before that someone had been bold enough to stop by his house late in the evening, supposedly in order to deliver him some important papers. The racy miniskirt she was wearing made him somewhat suspicious of her motives.

Although he was tired of it, the attention itself wasn’t a surprise. He came from a good family and after graduating at the top of his class, he had advanced in his career with an amazing speed. He was a financial manager at one of the most successful corporation in information technology. At the age of 32 he was quickly reaching for the post of CFO in Sowenger IT PLC. That alone would have been enough to catch the attention of the ladies but he wasn’t stupid—he knew that his looks played a big part in all this. He was tall and always dressed immaculately. He also kept himself in a good shape. He didn’t have a lot of hobbies but the years spent practicing martial arts had sculped his muscles nicely. He had overheard what people talked about him on coffee breaks—how handsome they all thought he was and how dark his eyes were and how they would like to get their hands on his pale skin. He didn’t usually pay any attention to that kind of talk but it did make him feel somewhat uneasy. He had never shown any interest towards any of the women working there but no matter how coldly he acted, it didn’t seem to faze them. Now they just kept whispering about how mysterious and brooding he was.

With a quiet sigh Sasuke straightened up from his seat, stretching his neck. He collected the papers back to the folders, promising himself that he would finish them before lunchtime on Monday. Then he picked up his briefcase and turned off the lights.

He was looking forward to the weekend and the peaceful quietness of his apartment.

 

*******

 

  
Monday started off like any other day—accountants, assistants and even cleaning ladies were making up excuses so they could stop by Sasuke's office. Some were just stopping by to wish him a good morning but others would linger in his office, blabbering about their weekend. He wasn’t in a mood for pointless small talk so early in the morning and he couldn’t handle the coy smiles and fake giggles.

Sasuke massaged his temples and downed his third cup of coffee. He had way too much work to do and being constantly interrupted was really starting to get on his nerves. He had just decided to go shut his door when his boss—Mr. Sowenger—popped in.

"G'morning, Sasuke", Mr. Sowenger called out, seemingly bursting with energy.

Sasuke nodded politely. "Good morning, Mr. Sowenger."

"Hardworking as always, I see", Mr. Sowenger noted, motioning his hand towards the papers stacked on the desk. "I must request your assistance in the conference room. They just delivered doughnuts there."

Sasuke faked a polite smile and got up from his chair, straightening his jacket. "Yes, Sir."

They walked past the cubicles and across the hallway to the conference room—Sasuke painfully aware of people shamelessly stealing glances at him. He wasn't completely sure whether he really heard a catcall or if it was just him being paranoid.

Mr. Sowenger opened the door to the conference room.

"G'mfffn", someone mumbled enthusiastically from the room, and Sasuke sighed.

There, on the opposite side of the room at the conference table, was Naruto Uzumaki—the second financial manager of the company. He was Sasuke’s coworker and also his self-proclaimed rival—although Sasuke couldn’t really take him seriously as a rival, considering that at the moment the blond-haired idiot had stuffed his mouth so full of doughnut that he couldn’t even speak. That didn’t seem to bother Naruto, who mock-saluted Mr. Sownger and unsurprisingly received an amused smile from the older man.

"Good morning to you too, Naruto", Mr. Sowenger chuckled and took a seat at the end of the table. "It seems that you managed to get yourself out of the bed this time."

Naruto smiled and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "I had to! Irene told me there would be doughnuts."

Mr. Sowenger laughed out loud while Sasuke got seated at the table across from Naruto, trying hard not to show his irritation just yet. It wasn’t a secret that Naruto managed to get on his nerves in a way that nobody else could. Sasuke couldn’t stand the constant tardiness and the careless attitude. He also couldn’t stand how obnoxiously loud Naruto was. At this point he was quite certain that at least 80 per cent of his headaches were caused by the said idiot hollering at the top of his lungs. Despite it all Sasuke was still trying to appear civil in front of their boss—since it was also no secret that Mr. Sowenger had a soft spot for Naruto.

"So", Mr. Sowenger stated. "By now you both must be well aware of Casper Clark retiring. It means that we will be needing a new CFO… and I bet you have a hunch why I invited you here today."

Sasuke nodded earnestly, while Naruto seemed to be concentrating on his next doughnut.

"I haven't been able to decide", Mr. Sowenger continued, "which one of you would suit the job better. You both have done a lot for our company so the decision isn't exactly easy. That's why I'm going to be watching you two very closely. I want to be certain that the right person gets promoted."

Sasuke nodded again, stealing a glance at Naruto, who in turn was absentmindedly sucking sugar off his fingers. Sasuke didn’t want to look too smug, but this promotion was basically his already.

Then Mr. Sowenger got up, taking the doughnut plate with him. "Great", he noted. "Go make me proud."

"Roger that, boss", Naruto laughed, waving a goodbye to their boss. Then he turned his gaze to Sasuke and grinned.

"What?" Sasuke glared, tiredly rubbing his temples with his fingertips.

"Nothing", Naruto quipped. "Just thought I should wish you luck. You'll need it since I will be the one who gets that promotion!"

Sasuke couldn't stop the arrogant scoff that erupted from his mouth. "Yeah, right", he snorted. "Big words from someone who couldn’t even get his tie straight."

Sasuke had to try very hard not to laugh while Naruto fumbled with his tie. "Try to make sure that the reports on budgeting process meet the deadline", Sasuke reminded before standing up and stepping out of the room.

 

*******

 

Sasuke closed his eyes with a resigned sigh and rubbed his face with his hands. His eyes were painfully dry and the text on his computer screen was starting to look blurry. Headache was guaranteed and it was just past lunch time.

Sasuke leaned back on his chair, stretching his muscles and trying to get some tension out of his spine. When it didn’t work he got up from the chair, the stiffness in his muscles making him hiss. He wiped nonexistent dust off his suit and decided that he needed some coffee—and a little break most certainly couldn’t hurt.

He slipped out of his room, trying to stay out of sight as much as possible. Some of the workers had apparently decided to take a late lunch and the place seemed blessedly empty. He was lucky enough to slip away without being noticed but his luck didn’t last. As soon as he reached the doorway of the lunchroom he could hear laughter and muffled chatting clearly through the door. With a defeated sigh he pushed the door open, fixing a cold expression on his face. One of the voices was a little bit too familiar to his liking.

"–and then I asked if he was certain that we were really talking about the same person. Because the Paris I know _doesn't_ know a thing about hotel business."

The room was filled with a new fit of laughter and the sound practically made Sasuke’s head pound.

"Oh, Naruto", someone cooed. "You are so _lucky_ to be a part of that kind of social circles",

"I have to admit that I am lucky", Naruto mused, "but only because I get to work together with all of you lovely ladies."

An exaggerated _aww_ followed the words, irritating Sasuke even further. Naruto on the other hand looked very pleased with himself, and Sasuke couldn’t stop himself from letting out an annoyed snort. The sound was followed by a sudden silence that settled in to the room while all eyes turned to him. As much as women wanted him, they also feared him. And that was the best thing that Sasuke could think of while he headed towards the coffee machine in silence. His happiness, unfortunately, didn’t last too long. There was one person in the room who apparently didn’t have necessary survival instincts.

"Hey", Naruto called out from the couch, "Sasuke–"

"Wait", Sasuke grunted, closing his eyes tiredly. "Let me get my coffee first."

"You are ruining the mood", Naruto complained. "We were having a good time until you came here with your sour expression and anti-fun attitude. "

"It is not my job to entertain you", Sasuke answered dryly, squeezing his coffee mug a little bit tighter. "If you have something that needs to be discussed you should stop by my office."

Then he turned around and hurried back to his room without waiting for the answer. He didn’t really care what everyone else thought about him—as far as he was concerned they were here to work and not socialize. In fact, he would have probably used the lunchroom more if small talk wasn’t mandatory—or if the room wasn’t so crowded with his coworkers. And if one certain blond-haired blabbermouth wasn’t so keen on constantly ruining his day.

He couldn't stand Naruto. He couldn’t stand how loud Naruto was or how stupidly naïve his positive attitude was. He couldn’t stand how unnecessarily chatty Naruto was with everyone or how Mr. Sowenger was so keen on him. Naruto was too impulsive, too irresponsible and way too careless. Naruto would show up at work without his tie, his blond hair messy and his shirt wrinkled. He would barge in to meetings late, dragging his motorcycle helmet with him. Sasuke was quite certain that Naruto had gotten where he was today at least partly due to his father’s status. The Uzumakis practically owned one third of the city so it was no wonder that his father was a very influential person.

Sasuke sneered and downed the rest of his coffee. His own parents were also wealthy but he had never used their money or his name as a stepping stool in business life—but he wasn’t so sure that Naruto wouldn’t do just that. The blonde was basically always going on about how amazing his father was so it wouldn’t be a surprise if his father had actually gotten him the job. The fact that Naruto would use his father’s status like that made Sasuke a bit uncertain about the upcoming promotion. He knew that he himself was much more qualified for the job but he wasn't completely certain if that was enough to get him promoted.

His office door opened with a loud bang, effectively disrupting his thoughts. Then Naruto invaded the room.

"Sassssssssuke!"

Sasuke sighed and got seated, lowering the empty coffee mug on the table. "What do you want?"

Naruto slumped on to the chair that was placed on the other side of the table, right across from Sasuke. The blonde let his gaze travel around the room, finally landing on Sasuke. "Your room is amazingly boring", Naruto sniggered.

"It's neatly organized—unlike yours", Sasuke retorted. "Is that all you came here to say?"

Naruto let out a bored snort. "You're depressing."

"And you're burdensome."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "I just came to inform you that the reports for the budgeting process are done. At least my part is."

Sasuke blinked. "...Already?"

"Yeah", Naruto laughed. "Erica, Candice and Amy were very helpful. Even Meredith helped, when I mentioned how well her new blue stockings suited her horn-rimmed glasses."

With a snort Sasuke turned his attention to the computer screen. Of course Naruto would find a way to get things done without having to do them himself—even if it meant sucking up to Meredith, who was officially the meanest woman in the office. "Send me the copies", Sasuke ordered, feeling his headache slowly but surely returning.

"I will", Naruto replied. Then he got up from his seat and made his exit while whistling loudly.

Sasuke opened his desk drawer and desperately fished around for painkillers. He was so done—and it was only Monday.

He couldn’t stand Naruto.

 


	2. Chapter 2

The week went by fast while Sasuke was completely absorbed in his work—which of course wasn't anything out of the ordinary. However, the fact that he was tired by Wednesday, was really unusual. And by Friday he was utterly exhausted. He knew that he looked somewhat murderous when he started the day by marching to the vending machine at the end of the corridor. It wasn’t something that he would usually do, but he was out of options. He stuffed a few coins in the machine and pressed the button with an unnecessary force, choosing an energy drink with the most over the top label. He would normally never drink anything so disgusting but under the circumstances he couldn’t help it—coffee just wasn’t enough.

The artificial taste made him grimace. Nevertheless, he took another long sip, regretting his decision more and more. Double espresso would have been so much better.

"Yo, Sasuke!"

Sasuke could practically feel an irritated scowl settling on his face. "Naruto", he replied with a grim tone. He turned to glance at the blonde who was currently casually leaning against the vending machine. Naruto had rolled up his sleeves all the way to the elbows, revealing his tattooed arms. Sasuke wanted to point out how unprofessional he looked but it was way too early to start another pointless quarrel.

Naruto stretched drowsily, focusing his gaze on Sasuke. "You look terrible. What's going on?"

"Nothing", Sasuke retorted, glancing angrily at the blonde.

"Yeah, right", Naruto scoffed, only then noticing the bottle Sasuke was holding. "Wait—is that an energy drink? An _actual_ energy drink?"

Sasuke glanced at the beverage in his hand as if it had just magically appeared there. "So it seems", he grimaced.

"Weird", Naruto mused. "I thought you only drink coffee. And just when you think you know someone..."

Sasuke shot a curious look at the younger man, but Naruto didn't seem to notice—he had shifted his focus back to the vending machine and was currently fishing out a candy bar. The blonde opened the wrapper with a dramatic gesture and stuffed half of the candy bar in his mouth while turning around to head back to his office.

"Since you’re trying out new things or whatever", Naruto winked, and then continued, "you should try chocolate. Maybe the sweetness could heal that sour expression of yours."

Sasuke could feel his murderous glare return tenfold. He was counting the hours till he could go home and just sleep.

   


*******

   


Sasuke had just managed to sit down on his chair when Mr. Sowenger barged in.

"Sasuke", Mr. Sowenger quaked. "Emergency meeting in Naruto's office. Now!"

Sasuke raised his eyebrows curiously, but Mr. Sowenger had already dashed away. Sasuke got up reluctantly. Naruto’s office was the last place he wanted to be right now but he didn’t really have a choice in the matter. He closed his laptop and followed Mr. Sowenger.

Naruto’s office was as messy as always. Stacks of folders were lying around on top of the table, the desk drawers were open and something that looked like a pair of muddy sneakers had been thrown in the corner. Since all the chairs were buried under the papers, Sasuke decided that he didn't really need to take a seat anyway.

Mr. Sowenger looked worried when he seated himself a bit awkwardly on one of the less cluttered chairs. He let his gaze travel back and forth between Sasuke and Naruto. "As you both know", Mr. Sowenger then stated, "I'll be celebrating my anniversary this weekend."

Sasuke stared at his employer in disbelief—was this really the reason for their emergency meeting? Not that it was all that unusual, considering that Mr. Sowenger was somewhat prone to weirdness at times. Sasuke took a deep breath and tried to keep his expression blank despite the irritation gnawing at the back of his skull. The man was their boss after all—if he wanted an emergency meeting concerning his anniversary, so be it.

"I’m taking my wife to Vermont for a quick getaway", Mr. Sowenger continued, tapping the armrest with his fingers. "But that isn’t the only reason for this meeting. I need to talk to you about some urgent changes concerning Mr. Igleheart's willingness to finance our research and development."

That apparently caught even Naruto’s attention. Alfred Igleheart was a very wealthy elderly gentleman, who happened to be almost abnormally interested in information technology. A deal with Mr. Igleheart was something that many dreamed of, and Sowenger IT PLC had been working hard to secure the funding.

"Has he made his decision?" Sasuke asked, his voice a little tight.

Mr. Sowenger shrugged. "At least he's willing to negotiate. His assistant just contacted me. As it turns out, Mr. Igleheart can only fit us into his schedule this weekend. But as I just told you, I already have made plans—and my wife would not be happy if I cancelled our romantic weekend."

Naruto let out a weird high-pitched sound. "You mean, you want us to–?"

"Exactly", Mr. Sowenger nodded. "I managed to book him a suite at The Cowlstock resort. You two will meet him and convince him to seal the deal.

Mr. Sowenger was quiet for a moment and then smiled. "I have also made reservations for you two. You will be staying at the resort with him until Monday."

"Until Monday?" Sasuke swallowed.

Mr. Sowenger nodded enthusiastically. "You will be having dinner with him on Sunday, so it will be easier to just spend the night there. I suppose you are well aware of Igleheart’s eccentric reputation. He describes himself as a seasoned party animal. It’s important to show him that we are just as fun loving and laid-back as he is."

Sasuke felt suddenly quite queasy, but managed a rigid nod.

Mr. Sowenger reached over to pat him on the shoulder. "I know I can trust you two with this. I will mail you the schedules later. Get ready to start your Saturday morning on a scenic cruise!"

Sasuke swallowed again. His tie felt way too tight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bam, that's the second chapter. This was a little bit shorter than the first but I'm still amazed that I managed to edit it so quickly (considering how much I actually had to edit). If you notice any mistakes that appear regularly, please let me know! I keep writing Sasuke as Sauske or Sasue and my brain just looks the other way I guess.
> 
> Anyway, the next chapter should be ready in a few days.


	3. Chapter 3

 

On Saturday morning Sasuke backed his bags and drove to The Cowlstock resort. He was annoyed about the whole arrangement—there was nothing as irritating as spending the weekend surrounded by people and entertaining a potential investor. Just the idea of an upcoming scenic cruise was enough to turn his expression sour. The boat would be filled with loud tourists and even louder children. The waves would rock the boat and people would wobble around and stand too close to him—just thinking about it now made his stomach twist unpleasantly. He also couldn’t stand golfing, but Igleheart was reputedly an avid fan and could spent hours on the golf field. And if that wasn’t bad enough, Igleheart also wanted to go clubbing. That was more than he could bare to think about.

Sasuke arrived at the hotel just five minutes past nine. He handed his car keys over to the valet and climbed the stairs to the front entrance. He checked in at the front desk and glimpsed around the lobby. Naruto was nowhere to be seen, but that wasn’t really a surprise. Sasuke was almost an hour early, since Mr. Igleheart would arrive around 10:00 am. With more than enough time to spare, Sasuke got seated in one of the elegant armchairs in the lobby, trying not to worry about whether or not Naruto would be late again.

At 9:45 am Naruto finally made his entrance. He was dressed in dark colors, with a leather jacket and a pair of tight jeans, effectively drawing attention to himself. Sasuke tried not to focus too much on the way the jeans cling to the blonde’s muscular thighs. It was an unsettling view in a way that Sasuke couldn’t completely understand, but it gnawed at him the whole time Naruto spent chatting up the female receptionist. The woman seemed pleased with the conversation and kept touching her hair, while Naruto didn’t seem to be in a hurry—never mind that Mr. Igleheart would be arriving any minute now.

Finally, the receptionist handed the key card to Naruto with one last smile, and Naruto managed to detach himself from the front desk. Sasuke stood up when Naruto headed towards him. The blonde was smiling widely and Sasuke could feel his trademark scowl settling on his face as the blonde got closer.

"You’re late", Sasuke stated.

Naruto’s smile faltered a bit. "Well, hello to you, too."

"Hn." Sasuke grunted, narrowing his eyes in irritation. "Hurry up and go change. You look like you crawled out of Forever21 -catalogue."

"Come on, Sasuke", the blonde groaned. "We're here to have fun! Even Mr. Sowenger said that we are supposed to have a good time."

"This isn’t a vacation. We are here to work."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Who says we can’t do both? Maybe it’s _you_ who should go change into something more... _comfortable_." Naruto let his gaze linger on Sasuke's immaculate suit. "On the other hand, I’m not sure you know what comfortable means."

Sasuke could feel his scowl deepen. He was just about to comment on how comfortably his fist would soon collide with Naruto’s jaw, but before he had the time to open his mouth, Mr. Igleheart decided to show up.

Mr. Igleheart was a tall and bony guy, with an over-grown grey hair that was sticking out in every possible direction. He was dressed in a bright colored Hawaiian shirt and cargo shorts. He was also wearing huge pink rimmed sunglasses and it would have been an understatement to say that people stared. Other customers in the lobby actually stopped what they were doing and turned to gawk at the man—who himself was busy studying the resort's layout, while his silver haired assistant was left to take care of the check-in.

Sasuke and Naruto glanced at each other uncertainly, but Naruto recovered quickly. "Mr. Igleheart!" Naruto sang out and marched towards the older man. Sasuke followed, feeling more than just a little out of place.

Naruto reached out his hand in greeting. "Good morning, sir. I'm Naruto Uzumaki. Nice to meet you."

"Ah, yes. Likewise, my boy." Igleheart greeted in a carefree manner. He then shifted his gaze to Sasuke. "And you are?"

"Sasuke Uchiha, sir", Sasuke answered, in turn shaking Mr. Igleheart’s hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you. How was your trip?"

"It was quite alright", Mr. Igleheart answered, eyeing Sasuke thoughtfully. "Do tell me", he then continued, "why on earth are you wearing a suit?"

Sasuke opened his mouth in confusion, but Naruto jabbed him with his elbow. "He just got back from a meeting. He didn't have time to change his clothes yet", Naruto lied.

Sasuke shot a pissed-off glare at his coworker.

"Yes, of course", Mr. Igleheart stated. "Off you go, then. I think I will help myself to some breakfast while you go freshen up."

"Yes, sir." Sasuke answered. "Sorry for the inconvenience."

"Don’t worry about it. I was getting hungry anyway", Mr. Igleheart answered, turning to motion to his assistant. "Kakashi, find me something to eat."

The assistant, who had been standing a little bit further away from them, nodded politely. Despite his silver hair, the man looked a lot younger than Sasuke had first guessed. The man had incredibly sharp eyes that left an uneasy feeling lingering in the back of Sasuke’s mind, but Naruto nudged him again with his elbow, effectively disrupting his thoughts.

"You heard him", Naruto insisted with a smug smile. "Hurry up and go change. Or do you need some help with that?"

Sasuke was absolutely fuming, but having a brawl right here in the lobby wouldn’t really help him with the promotion. He would just have to push the idiot overboard when they got to the boat.

 

*******

 

Sasuke felt naked. He had changed his clothes into one of the outfits his mother had forced him to buy on one of their biannual shopping trips. His mother had a weird urge to drag him with her and basically force him to buy clothes that she deemed fitting. He knew that his mother meant well, but he didn’t really feel like himself unless he was wearing a suit. He wasn’t even completely sure why he had packed more casual clothes with him, but at least this way he didn’t have to drive all the way pack to his apartment to change. Maybe it had been some sort of premonition or just a gut feeling, but it didn’t change the fact that he felt completely out of his element. Suits were reliable and neat—in a suit he didn’t have to worry about looking ridiculous or underdressed. And he rarely went anywhere where a suit would make him look overdressed, but apparently this was one of those occasions. So that’s how he ended up standing in front of his hotel room mirror, cursing under his breath.

The outfit wasn’t even overly laidback—it could have almost been considered as smart casual, if it wasn’t for the black suede biker jacket. He had just scolded Naruto about his choice in clothing and now he was basically dressed like him. Sasuke cursed again, running his fingers through his black hair. He could almost picture the spiteful smile on the blonde’s face and it just made him feel even more foul. Besides the cursed jacket he had chosen a midnight-blue long-sleeved t-shirt and he was also wearing a pair of black jeans and black leather shoes. He could hardly concentrate on anything else beside the fact that the jeans were uncomfortably tight on him. He couldn't even remember when was the last time he had worn jeans.

With a defeated sigh he shot one last glare towards his reflection and hurried out of the room—before he would change his mind and change back into his suit.

He knew he was fuming when he got in the elevator to go downstairs. The mellow elevator music only made him more irritated. By the time he reached the ground floor and the lobby he knew his murderous glare was back in full force.

A low whistle yanked Sasuke out of his dark thoughts. He lifted his gaze back up and saw Naruto, who was standing just a few feet away, gawking shamelessly at him.

"What the hell", Naruto gasped, "it really is you! "

Sasuke snorted. "What do you mean? Am I supposed to be impressed that you can actually recognize your colleague, or…?"

"You just look different, that’s all", Naruto retorted. "I mean, I’m just amazed that you actually own something other than the same suit in million different shades."

Sasuke snorted tiredly and barely stopped himself from rolling his eyes. "Who would have guessed", he scoffed.

Naruto got seated in one of the armchairs situated in the corner of the lobby. "Well, it was quite a shock", the blonde sniggered.

At that point Sasuke had stopped paying any attention to what the other man was saying. His eyes were glued on the way the blonde’s jeans stretched over muscular thighs and how snuggly the jacket covered his broad shoulders. Naruto was basically slouching in the chair and Sasuke wanted to snap at him, but instead he glanced at Naruto’s arms. The blonde had rolled his jacket sleeves up to his elbows and his tattoo-covered arms were clearly visible. For some reason Sasuke felt his eyes fixate on the ink. He knew he was staring, but it was weirdly fascinating to look at the pictures and try to decipher what they could mean–

"See something you like?" Naruto suddenly asked, and Sasuke nearly flinched.

The blonde was smirking and Sasuke turned his gaze elsewhere. "Sit properly", he barked. For some reason his cheeks felt quite warm. "Try to remember that we are here to represent the whole company."

Naruto made a sound, apparently to object. He didn’t have a chance, however, because just then Mr. Igleheart and Kakashi arrived, and they all headed towards the harbor—Sasuke actually eager to get on the boat. He really needed fresh air.

  


*******

  


"Oh my god", Naruto wheezed. "I can’t believe– ahaha, oh my god–"

They both were seated on a stony brink of a fountain, and Naruto was laughing so hard that he looked like he could pass out. Sasuke was glaring at him with murder in his eyes, but Naruto just laughed harder.

"Ahaha, who would have thought that– that you of all people would suffer from seasickness! Ahahah, this is so great."

Sasuke leaned his head in his hands and squeezed his eyes shut. "Yes, so great", he groaned. The scenic cruise had been pure torture. He had spent the whole time both shivering with cold and sweating at the same time. Every little wave that rocked the boat had made his knees weak and his insides turn around. Even now, on the solid ground, he could still feel the swaying of the boat. He felt nauseous sitting here, listening how Naruto was gasping for air amid his laughter.

"I’m sorry", Naruto sputtered. "It’s just… It’s you! You! Sasuke Uchiha, defeated by seasickness… on a scenic cruise."

Sasuke sighed and tried to ignore his coworker. Naruto had stayed with him after they had gotten off the boat and Mr. Igleheart had demanded Kakashi to find a local ice cream bar. At first Sasuke had been grateful that Naruto had kept him company, but now…

Naruto wiped tears from his eyes. "Ah, I shall remember this day as long as I live."

Sasuke tried to concentrate on breathing through the nausea, while idly wondering why he hadn't thrown Naruto overboard when he would have had the chance.

 

*******

 

It was almost an hour later that Igleheart and Kakashi got back.

"Everything alright, I hope?" Mr. Igleheart lamented. "You should have come with us to get some ice cream. I’m sure it would have made everything better, don’t you think? "

Sasuke stared at Mr. Igleheart, baffled by his words. "I–"

Luckily, Kakashi interrupted the conversation with a solemn cough. "Mr. Igleheart has a proposition concerning the golf game that was scheduled for the afternoon." 

"Ah, yes. Thank you, Kakashi", Mr. Igleheart concluded. "I don’t really feel like playing today. But there is a winery tour that sounded very interesting. I think wine tasting would really lift up our spirits."

Sasuke swallowed a disheartened moan. A winery tour sounded like pure torture. He wanted to take a shower and crawl into bed—and just sleep. But he didn’t really have a choice. He could already feel the disappointed glances that Mr. Igleheart was giving him. So he just nodded, trying to force a polite smile on his face. "Wine tasting sounds good", he croaked.

"Excellent", Mr. Igleheart laughed. "And later we shall head to downtown to check out the nightlife!"

Naruto’s excited shout luckily drowned out Sasuke’s groan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ummm... uh-oh.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ughhh I didn't mean to take so long to update, but my dog got really sick and required surgery so I have been taking care of her and spending all my money on her treatment. I also had a deadline concerning my master's thesis so that kept me busy for a while and after that I was so done that I just had to take some time to rest my wrecked nerves. Anyway, here's the new chapter.

It was already late in the afternoon when they returned to the hotel after the wine tasting. Igleheart had enjoyed the trip visibly more than the others, and Kakashi had to support him while they walked up the stair to the hotel lobby.

"Naruto", Mr. Igleheart slurred, patting the blonde on the back. "Ready to get your party on? After the dinner we are heading to the nightclub."

Naruto nodded and Mr. Igleheart snickered quite drunkenly, motioning Naruto to come closer. "Help your friend to relax. Otherwise we will have to spike up his drink a little bit. You know, with drugs", Igleheart whispered so loudly that Sasuke could hear the words clearly.

Naruto actually had the decency to look a little bit appalled, but nevertheless he gave a small laugh, sparing an apologetic glance at Sasuke. "I'll do my best."

 

*******

 

Sasuke rarely set his foot in a night club. Last time had been when he was still in university—and he couldn’t say that he missed it. He couldn't understand who would voluntarily spend time in a shady place filled with lousy music and watch people basically dry-humping on the dance floor. Cheap drinks only made the whole scenario even more disturbing and women in miniskirts weren’t really his thing either. Just thinking about it made him feel uncomfortable and somewhat queasy.

Sasuke clenched his hands into fists and reminded himself about the promotion. Naruto seemed to be getting along with Igleheart extremely well. It was clear that the millionaire preferred the blonde’s company. Sasuke didn’t want to admit it, but he felt a little bit intimidated by it all. He would just have to swallow his pride and—as disturbing as the idea was—be more like his blond-haired coworker.

Sasuke glared at his reflection in the mirror. He had spent an alarmingly long time in front of it, scrutinizing his appearance. He was wearing the outfit from earlier, but he had tossed the blue long-sleeved shirt aside and put on a black, loose-fitting T-shirt instead. The T-shirt was plain but it had been a present from his older brother, so he supposed it was some kind of designer shirt—although to him it just looked old and a little bit frayed. The garment was fashionable in a way he couldn’t understand, he supposed. He felt somewhat silly standing there, dressed like he was a twenty-something renegade, only missing a motorcycle and a bottle of cheap whiskey.

Sasuke run his fingers through his hair one last time—hoping it would look messy in a carefree way. He took a deep breath and grabbed his leather jacket from the armchair, where it had been laying while he changed his shirt. With a deep-seated irritation he headed to the lobby, wishing for the umpteenth time that he could have just stayed in his room.

As he entered the lobby, he noticed Naruto sitting in one of the overly cushioned couches that were situated around the dimly-lit space. The blonde looked as relaxed as always, and Sasuke let his gaze linger on the blonde for one short moment—just to make sure that the idiot was properly dressed, of course. Naruto was wearing a white T-shirt with the jacket from earlier. The shirt was tight in a way that made Sasuke avert his gaze, but that only made things worse. In a moment of horror Sasuke’s eyes registered the pants that Naruto was wearing—the almost leathery material that was covering his legs. Sasuke lifted his gaze back up before he could make sure, but on the other hand he most definitely didn’t really want to find out.

Focusing on keeping his eyes firmly on anything else except the pants—or the damned T-shirt—he made his way towards the couch. He seated himself in an armchair opposite Naruto. He could practically feel the blonde's eyes on him. He tried not to be bothered by it, but he could easily see how those blue eyes were taking in even the smallest details in his clothes. In the end he couldn't help the fed-up grunt that left his lips. "What do you want?"

"Nothing", Naruto grinned, apparently not at all bothered by Sasuke’s tone. "It just seems that you’re not very relaxed. Mr. Igleheart is not gonna like that."

Sasuke took a deep breath, trying his best not to snap. "Oh, but I am", he gritted out, "I am so overwhelmingly relaxed. Why wouldn’t I be—after all, I get to do what I love the most."

"Ah, yes", Naruto snorted. "We all know you enjoy nightlife."

"Indeed", Sasuke scoffed, trying to stop the smile that was tugging the corners of his mouth for some reason. "I can hardly wait."

"Oh, really? And here I thought that Mr. Igleheart would actually have to slip something in your drink."

"That would be illegal", Sasuke snorted. "I doubt that even he would actually go that far. "

"I wouldn’t be so certain", Naruto laughed. "The man does seem kind of shady, to be honest."

"Maybe so, but spiking up somebody’s drink wouldn’t do any good for his business."

Naruto smiled shortly, but didn’t say anything. They sat in silence for a while, but then Naruto spoke again. "Hey, Sasuke", he blurted, nudging the floor with the tip of his shoe.

"Hn?"

"I just… You know." Naruto shrugged. "It wouldn’t actually kill you if you would just ease up a little."

Sasuke raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Excuse me?"

Naruto looked a bit sheepish. "Never mind", he finally shrugged, "Forget it."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes in a warning. He was about to pester the blonde with more questions, but Mr. Igleheart decided to make his entrance right then. The man was dressed in a disturbingly purple suit that he had accessorized with huge gold-rimmed sunglasses. There was a wide smile on Mr. Igleheart’s face while he almost skipped through the lobby and towards them. Kakashi followed his boss almost lazily, dressed in a much more discreet attire. For some reason Sasuke got a feeling that the man didn’t want to be seen and thus dressed himself in such an uninspiring way that he could hide in plain sight near his flamboyant boss.

"Well then", Igleheart announced, adjusting his sunglasses. "Good evening, boys."

Sasuke and Naruto both stood up, greeting Mr. Igleheart politely. Mr. Igleheart, unsurprisingly, paid no attention to their greetings, instead pointing his hand towards the main exit in a theatrical fashion. "Our limousine awaits!"

Sasuke swallowed an irritated grunt and glanced at Naruto, who just shrugged and followed Mr. Igleheart, who was already skipping towards the door. Sasuke straightened his clothes swiftly, trying to buy himself a few seconds to muster up a less indignant look on his face. He didn’t have much luck, since Kakashi was standing nearby expectantly, apparently politely waiting for him. Sasuke shot a murderous glance towards him before following Naruto, but the silver haired man only offered a thin smile in return. Sasuke was just about to narrow his eyes questioningly, but Mr. Igleheart, who was walking just a few feet ahead, caught his attention.

Mr. Igleheart patted Naruto on the shoulder and leaned in to whisper something in his ear. His hand lingered on the blonde’s shoulder, and Sasuke felt something unfamiliar stir inside him. For some reason he wanted to reach out and swat the hand away. The idea was ridiculous and he had no idea where it came from. He would never risk the promotion for something so stupid, but he felt even more murderous than just moments ago. The man had basically been all over Naruto since that cursed scenic cruise. Not that Sasuke cared, of course, but something about the old man made his skin crawl. He didn’t know what kind of activities Igleheart had planned for them. Mr. Sowenger had said that Mr. Igleheart wanted to see that they were just as fun-loving as he was, but Sasuke wasn’t sure how exactly he was going to determine that—or what fun-loving even meant in Igleheart's vocabulary. Hopefully it wouldn’t require anything improper.

The limousine was parked in front of the main entrance, and a very pompous looking driver opened the car's door so they could step in. When they were seated, Mr. Igleheart conjured a wide smile on his face. "Well, boys. Nightlife, ahoy!"

Sasuke tried his best not to get any more irritated, since he could already feel a migraine approaching. He had no such luck, however, because Mr. Igleheart decided that this was a perfect opportunity for a quick singalong. Sasuke could actually feel a vein pulsing in his temple and he glanced at Naruto, but the younger man didn't even look annoyed at all—and that just made Sasuke's mood even worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had originally planned on making this chapter a bit longer, but it was a struggle to even get this much done. So this chapter is quite short, but hopefully I will be able to update more regularly from now on.


End file.
